Tom Atencio: Rumors of impending demise "a complete lie"

No stranger to defending the financial viability of his fledgling MMA promotion, Affliction Vice President Tom Atencio is once again standing behind the future of Affliction Entertainment.

Less than a week removed from the organization’s second effort, “Day of Reckoning,” Atencio told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that rumors of an upcoming shutdown are unequivocally untrue.

“It’s a complete lie,” Atencio said. “I don’t know where it came from.”

Atencio said that a third event is currently in the works for Affliction, and that details for the show will soon be released.

“We’re looking at three to four months when we’ll do the next fight,” Atencio said. “The bottom line is we’re here. We’re coming up on the next event, and we’ll give the date pretty soon.”

On Thursday a rash of Internet reports suggested that Atencio himself had admitted to the impending halt in Affliction Entertainment’s operations. The appearance reportedly came during Thursday’s edition of “The Tom Leykis Show,” a syndicated CBS Radio program. A few Internet reports also suggested the fight promotion’s end was near and could even be officially announced in the coming days.

Atencio said not only did he not make an appearance on the radio show but that he has never been a guest of the program.

“I’ve never even been on the ‘Tom Leykis Show,'” Atencio said. “The biggest radio show that I’ve been on is ‘Frosty, Heidi and Frank,’ which is the same radio station. But I’ve never been on ‘The Tom Leykis Show.'”

While Atencio admitted he was disappointed that he was having to address another set of dire rumors — following the multiple reports of paltry ticket sales that surrounded “Day of Reckoning” — the Affliction executive said he appreciated the continued attention focused on his organization.

“It’s crazy,” Atencio said. “At least people are talking about us. It’s a new market that I’ve never been on.”

While reports released by the California State Athletic Commission earlier this week indicated the Day of Reckoning’s $3.3 million payroll far exceeded the $1.5 million collected in reported ticket sales, Atencio insisted the business relationships Affliction has negotiated put the promotion in an enviable position.

“I’ve got Golden Boy (Productions),” Atencio said. “I’ve got (Donald) Trump. I’ve got M-1. How are we going to go under with a lineup like that?”

Atencio didn’t care to elaborate on Affliction’s future beyond a proposed third event, but he was sure to clarify that wasn’t because he is fearful of what lies ahead.

“Anybody that knows me knows that I just take it one fight at a time,” Atencio said. “I’m honest. I try to give as much information out as I can without getting screwed.

“I’m learning. This is new to me. But the bottom line is that we’re moving forward.”

So while the full details of Affliction’s future aren’t yet completely known, Atencio was very clear on the current rumors suggesting the end is near.

“It is completely false,” Atencio said. “It is untrue.”

* * * *
Soon after our interview with Atencio, the Affliction executive also appeared on Hardcore Sports Radio’s “Thursday Night Throwdown” program on SiriusXM. He told host Gabe Morency that there’s no truth to reports he’s been in contact with UFC officials about a possible shutdown.

“I know (UFC President) Dana White’s phone number, I know Dana, and he knows me,” Atencio said. “That’s about the extent of it. … Have I spoken to Dana? Yes. Have I recently? No. Have I called him to give him (our) fighters? No.

“I’m not going under.”

Atencio also said it’s easy for rumors to spread quickly.

“With the whole onslaught of the Internet and everything else, rumors just fly,” he said. “I could make a rumor right now and say, ‘B.J. Penn got hurt, and he’s not fighting tomorrow, so go cancel your tickets.’ All of the sudden, everyone is going to start believing it. It’s not true. It’s that people get on the Internet and start making up lies, and people start to believe it. And without checking facts, there’s all these other Internet sites — these not so legitimate Internet sites — and they post it. People believe it. They read it and say, ‘It must be true.’ It’s not true. I’m here.

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